win your war
by MedusaOfTheSpecies
Summary: Once Upon A Time, Gabrielle Delacour had been a damsel in distress. These days, Ginny had long since taught her how to fight. :: For Princi


**Dedicated to Princi, For Hogwarts's Teacher Appreciation Event.**

 _Written for the 100 Ways To Say "I Love You" Challenge. (58."You don't have to say anything.")_

* * *

Harry Potter is the first thing Gabrielle sees when he pulls back her onto land, sputtering and gasping. There he is, green eyes and the lightning scar that runs through his face. She's smothered by Fleur within a second, cocooned in a pile of blankets, but she can't stop staring at Harry. She's never been rescued by a hero before.

She doesn't have time to thank before he's gone, pulled away by a bushy-haired girl and a boy with hair like fire. They speak to him in rapid-fire English and she's lost in the translation, but behind them, an equally redheaded girl catches her eye.

The girl stares at Gabrielle and lifts an eyebrow. _Are you okay?_

 _Yes._ Gabrielle answers with a silent nod.

When Gabrielle blinks, the girl is gone.

...

Gabrielle meets the girl again when she's eleven.

Harry's there too and she's so excited to see him again that she glows. She knows she's staring but she is so, so grateful to see someone that she knows that it hurts. Her sister winks when she catches her eye and Gabrielle frowns in confusion.

Beside her, Ginny Weasley _(Gabrielle's glad to finally have a name to call her, even if they haven't spoken yet)_ clears her throat loudly and Gabrielle blushes. So that's why everyone is laughing at her. They think she has a crush on Harry.

She follows her sister around for the rest of the day, chattering in French, but her mind is somewhere else. She doesn't like Harry, despite what everyone else thinks. She doesn't have the word for it but something about Harry makes him not her type.

 _(And how can he be, when Gabrielle's idol has red hair and a dislike towards Gabrielle herself?)_

 _..._

"The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming."

Around Gabrielle, screams ensued. The chaos started as people began to apparate or run away. Gabrielle fell to the floor, wailing, as she was trampled in the chaos. People stepped carelessly on her in the rush to escape.

Suddenly, a strong pair of arms grabbed Gabrielle's hand, pulling her away. Gabrielle didn't try resisting as she was pulled behind a shed, gasping for air. Once she caught her breath, Gabrielle looked up into Ginny Weasley's eyes and almost fell backward. Ginny had saved her!

"Thank you very much!" Gabrielle said, trying to communicate her gratitude with her broken English. Ginny winced at her accent and Gabrielle's smile fell.

"You're welcome," Ginny said brusquely, looking around.

"Why do you-" Gabrielle struggled to find the word, "-dislike me very much?"

"I don't hate you," Ginny answered. "But you're too much like your sister."

Gabrielle didn't understand how that was a bad thing but she nodded anyways.

"You are going to fight when you are back at zee school, yes?" Gabrielle asked curiously.

A smile graced Ginny's face and Gabrielle almost gasped at how different she looked when she was happy.

"Yes, I will," Ginny said with pride.

Gabrielle smiled back. "When I am older, I want to help and fight too."

Ginny nodded. "I hope it's over by then, but if not, look me up. You are capable of being more than a damsel in distress."

Gabrielle blushed. "Thank you."

...

"Harry eez dead. Voldemort has won," Fleur's patronus said and Gabrielle gasped, clutching her mother's hand. "I will stay and fight with zee resistance. I love you all."

Gabrielle's mother burst into tears and her father sat down, clutching his head in his hands.

Around them, the clock struck twelve with a mournful cry. Outside, not a shout could be hurt.

The world ended in silence.

"Welcome to Potterwatch," The voice on the radio said and Gabrielle sat down on the floor of the safe-house. Since Voldemort's victory, the death eaters had been on the hunt for anyone with connections to the rebellion and Gabrielle's close relationship to her sister was openly known.

They hadn't moved fast enough the first time and Gabrielle's mother had died at the hand of a death eater. Her dad had been captured a week later. Since then, Gabrielle had never stayed in the same place for more than a day, moving around the country. It had been five years of nonstop hiding.

"River here, reporting on the list of the dead. Let's all have a moment of silence for today's dead," The radio's voice said and Gabrielle crossed her fingers, praying.

"Michael Carnelian was captured in a raid today in Diagon Alley. Alicia Spinnet has been missing since she went out to get food to the safehouse today. Another series of Muggle home burnings have occurred," The Radiohead's voice broke. "And finally, known Order of the Phoenix members Fleur Delacour-Weasley and her husband Bill Weasley were killed in a fight with a group of snatchers. We ask you to give a moment of silence for all these brave fighters."

Gabrielle fell to the floor, howling in angst. She stayed like that, screaming until the clock struck twelve once again. Then, she packed her bags and began a long walk.

...

Gabrielle Delacour found Ginny Weasley in the rubble of a muggle home. Before the other girl had the chance to say anything, Gabrielle spoke.

"Did you mean it? What you told me when I was younger. That you'd teach me to fight," Gabrielle asked desperately.

Ginny regarded steadily. Gabrielle held her breath, hoping she would pass whatever test Ginny threw at her. "Are you sure?"

Gabrielle let out the air she had been holding. She thought of her mother's pleas and her father's scream and the fact that Fleur had never said goodbye. "Yes. I have nothing left other than this."

"Welcome then," Ginny said, a ghost of a smirk on her lips.

...

Somedays, curled up wherever the resistance was hiding, Gabrielle wondered how she had gotten to this from admiring her sister to fighting her war. Fleur had hated injustice. Gabrielle hated past tense.

Whenever she mentioned this to Ginny, the other girl would laugh bitterly. "This isn't just her war now. We chose this. It's personal for us."

Gabrielle had thought Ginny might understand and she did. "I know. I just wish she was here."

Ginny's face softened a fraction. "I wish she was here too. Her and Bill and Fred and Harry and everyone else. But they're nothing more than our ghosts now. We're fighting for them. They died for us and we're honoring them by living and fighting."

Gabrielle thought that if she died, she wouldn't want Ginny fighting and dying too. She didn't say it out loud though. Ginny wouldn't understand.

...

"I can't look at this anymore," Gabrielle said, looking away from the mutilated body in front of her.

"Greyback," Ginny said back, ignoring Gabrielle's disgust. "Typical. When I see him, I'll do much worse, trust me."

Some days, Gabrielle thought she should have chosen another partner. Other days, she thought she might have made the best choice of her life.

...

"I'm in love with you," Gabrielle admits one day, when they're huddled up, battle plans laid on their laps. It's such an unexpected confessions that it surprises even Gabrielle when it comes out of her mouth.

Ginny looked up and Gabrielle blushed. "You don't have to say anything, I'm sorry if I scared you off. But we could die any day now and I just wanted you to know."

"I love you too, Gabby," Ginny stated and Gabrielle stared, shocked. "Now, take a look at the second page."

Gabrielle laughed, pushing aside the plans and leaning her head on Ginny's shoulder. "Thank you, Ginny, for teaching me to fight and helping me adjust. You are my hero."

"You deserved to learn," Ginny said. "And I'm so glad I did."


End file.
